D??th

by Corey Apar
Daath (rhymes with "goth") was formed by childhood friends Eyal Levi (guitar), Mike Kameron (keyboards, vocals), and Sean Farber (vocals) while the three were students together at Boston's Berklee College of Music. Originally called Dirtnap, the trio wound up leaving school to concentrate on the band full-time, eventually making their way back to Atlanta, GA. From here the guys sought to carve out a distinct sound for themselves in the extreme metal world, perfecting their unique blend of death, thrash, and black metal with symphonic and electronic elements. With their name being Hebrew for knowledge (as in the kind not usually obtained by the masses) the guys were also heavily influenced by the teachings of Kabbalah (Jewish mysticism), though they didn't identify with any particular religion. Daath simply strove to combine their headbanging grooves with a purposeful message, feeling that they could act as a "doorway between instinct and intellect." Daath released an album in the early 2000s before being brought to the attention of Roadrunner Records by guitarist-turned-producer James Murphy (Disincarnate, Obituary, Death, etc.) after he worked with them on ten songs in 2005. The sextet ultimately signed to the label in the spring of 2006 and went back into the studio with Murphy to finish up a few more songs for their upcoming debut. By now the core trio was rounded out by lead guitarist Emil Werstler, bassist Jeremy Creamer, and drummer Kevin Talley (who replaced Matt Ellis). With additional studio help from Colin Richardson and Andy Sneap, their album The Hinderers -- whose lyrics were based on the Kabbalistic concept of an inverted Tree of Life and each of the 13 songs represented one of the points on the tree -- appeared in March 2007. Daath supported it on dates with Job for a Cowboy and the Acacia Strain before heading over to the U.K. with Unearth.